Falling for Me, Then Judging My Past

I remembered the way he let Flora hug him yesterday, and suddenly, I felt a sense of disgust. I took a step back. "Stay away from me."

Samuel's face darkened, but quickly, he adjusted himself, looking at me with a pitiful expression. "What's wrong? Are you jealous because I gave Flora the watch?"

He pinched my cheek and eyed me, studying my expression. "That watch, I've worn it for two years. The strap's worn out. If Flora wanted it, I just gave it to her. It's not worth much."

I remembered when I gave him that watch. It was his birthday, and when he felt the engraving on the side of the watch, he was so moved that he almost cried.

He had said, "Tessa, this is perfect. I feel so lucky. Adrian never appreciated me. I finally got your response."

But now, he casually dismissed that watch, saying it wasn’t worth anything.

Was it the watch that wasn’t valuable, or did he think my feelings were worthless?

I couldn't say for sure.

Seeing that I wasn’t responding, he tried to coax me again, but I heard his phone buzz.

He immediately released his hold on me and fished for his phone.

Before long, he looked up, his face a little strained. "Tessa, you should sleep. Those guys got Flora drunk. They’ve all been drinking, so I need to drive them home."

He sighed in frustration. "It’s so inconsiderate, disturbing our time together."

Inside, I felt torn. One part of me thought, Tessa, don’t let him go. He’s your boyfriend. Why should he be taking another woman home?

The other part of me said, What does it matter if you stop him? He's here physically, but his heart is somewhere else.

So, I went along with it, pretending to be calm. "Okay, go ahead."

Samuel kissed me eagerly, promising, "Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon."

As he drew close, I still smelled that fresh scent on him, but it only made me feel nauseous now.

Samuel even changed into a new set of clothes, checked himself in the mirror, and made sure he looked presentable before he left.

My heart ached so much, it felt like I couldn’t breathe.

He used to be different. He always presented himself as polished and handsome in front of me, and he’d once said, “If I’m not handsome enough, what if you fall for someone else?”

But now, he was dressing up for another woman.

That night, he didn’t come home until late. When he lay next to me, I clearly smelled the fragrance of gardenias—a scent I recognized as Flora’s.

He reached out to hold me, but I turned away. Concern laced his voice as he asked, "Tessa, are you still awake? Is something wrong?"

His concern didn’t seem fake, but I closed my eyes, trying to understand how we had ended up here.

I mumbled, "Go to sleep."

Samuel, still worried, repeated, "If something’s wrong, you have to tell me. I’ll be upset if you don’t."

I held back the tears rising in my throat. "Mm."

The next day was my mom Sophia Wren's anniversary. In the past, Samuel used to care more than I did, getting up early to buy flowers and running around to make sure everything was perfect. He would often say how thankful he was to Sophia because, without her, he wouldn’t have me to love.

But today, I was already up, and he was still sound asleep. When he saw me awake, he blinked groggily. "Tessa, why are you up so early?"

He had already forgotten. His mind was consumed by the excitement of his affair.

Looking at Samuel, oblivious and unaware, I swallowed the words I wanted to say. I shook my head, opening my mouth but only managing two words: "Nothing's wrong."

He seemed to relax and rolled over, falling back asleep.